Byzantine, Texas

I applaud calling the show out for what it is, but was amused and bemused to see the backpedaling statements that she's "a lovely girl," "mazel tov" to the couple, and that it's "fun." Here is a quote from Fr. Justin Frederick writing in The Confessor's Tongue : The Virtue of Hatred Abhor that which is evil, cleave to what is good. Romans 12:9 The Bible commands us to hate, and it is not found in the Old Testament, but the New! This hatred is both a virtue and a necessity for us if we are to live a Christian life. We generally think of hatred as a sin, and, when directed against man made in God’s image, it is. Yet hatred is not something that has to be completely rooted out of our souls; it merely needs to be directed against the proper object. In last week’s epistle from Romans chapter 12, St. Paul commands us to “abhor that which is evil.” The Greek word apostugeo contains the root verb “to hate” with a prefix which adds intensity to that ha...

H/T: Bad Vestments

The visit has proven to be highly politicized, which should surprise no one. To one extreme the Patriarch is seen as a beneficent leader visiting his flock and strengthening the bond he has with the Ukrainian faithful. The other extreme sees him as an unwelcome dictator who wants to subordinate the Ukrainian people and maintain unwanted control (the word "yoke" is often used) over the Church in Ukraine and increase Moscow's political control. There are just too many articles being published to get every point and counter-point in. ( ZIK ) - An expert on religion, Andrij Yurash, said to ZIK July 27 the visit to Ukraine of Russian Orthodox Church Patriarch Kiril has a political dimension which is part of the ideology pursued both by Kiril and the Russian regime. The essence of this ideology is that, insofar as Ukraine cannot be brought to the Russian fold politically, at least a spiritual noose should be tied. “Moscow believes the Russian church should become the main cemen...

( AFR ) - Ancient Faith Radio is happy to announce a native iPhone App, developed by Axios Digital Solutions, which allows you to easily play our two radio stations at home or on the go. Just visit the App store in iTunes or on your iPhone and search for “Ancient Faith” to download. More information available here .

Ft. Lauderdale, Fl ( Antiochian ) – The Orthodox Christian Network is excited to announce its newest addition to its already dynamic and ever evolving list of Podcast Channels – a series dedicated to Orthodox Parenting. Rev. Dr. Christopher T. Metropulos, the Executive Director of the SCOBA Agency said, “We are truly excited to offer this new channel dedicated to assist parents raising children in the Orthodox Christian way. OCN welcomes with pride Ginny Nieuwsma , a dedicated mother of six along with the professionals who will be asked to appear on the program”. The podcast is titled “ Mission Possible: Orthodox Parenting Today ” and will be available on OCN’s newly enhanced and upgraded web site www.myocn.net . On any given day, Ginny Nieuwsma might be found driving the afternoon carpool for her 10 and 12 year old sons, filling out college forms for her 18 year old daughter, babysitting her grandchildren, phoning her married daughter who is a graduate student in New York, or atte...

Cairo ( AINA ) - Pope Shenouda III, the head of the Coptic Orthodox Church in Egypt, believes that there is no common solution to sectarian problems that arise from time to time in Egypt. "Every problem should be tackled in its own context and [according to] the environment in which it emerged and should be tackled by all relevant parties," he said. In an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, Pope Shenouda said, "With regards to sectarian problems, there is only a role for security forces whilst MPs and municipal councils are absent. After the security forces get involved, religious institutions also intervene in support of the security solution. After that, we attack religious figures and accuse them of being political." The Pope denied that these were isolated incidents saying, "If isolated incidents are happening again and again they cannot be described as isolated incidents." He also expressed that not all problems are dealt with objectively; however he ref...

O Dormition Fast, I know you are coming up soon. I keep reminding myself not to try and cram as many non-fasting foods into my mouth as I can in the days before the fast. Time will tell. [The] lofty mind will press straight on to its self-imposed end, not turning aside to see anything on the way. It passes through life, but its gaze is fixed on heaven; it is the good steersman directing the bark to some landmark there. But the grosser mind looks down; it bends its energies to bodily pleasures as surely as the sheep stoop to their pasture; it lives for gorging and still lower pleasures; it is alienated from the life of God, and a stranger to the promise of the Covenants; it recognizes no good but the gratification of the body. It is a mind such as this that “walks in darkness,” and invents all the evil in this life of ours; avarice, passions unchecked, unbounded luxury, lust of power, vain-glory, the whole mob of moral diseases that invade men’s homes. - St. Gregory of Nyssa, On Virgini...

( AOI ) - I just returned from the national convention of the Self-Ruled Antiochian Archdiocese in Palm Desert, California. Rather than being an oasis in the desert, I – along with many others I spoke with – found the Convention to be a real struggle – even a proverbial “desert” experience of authentic spiritual warfare. Perhaps I shouldn’t be surprised, as we know that our struggle is not really with flesh and blood but with powers and principalities. The latter were in evidence in a way that was almost palpable to this observer. I went to the convention filled with hope. The episcopal crisis appeared to be resolved in a manner acceptable to both sides in this country at least (who know where the Holy Synod really is in this?). Overall I felt the archdiocese seemed to be in pretty good shape. I do a podcast for Ancient Faith Radio and receive lots of encouraging emails from inquirers who are interested in the Orthodox Church. From my rosy little seat, I figured everything was, well, p...

Koinonia on A False Humility: the Moral Madness of Our Age . I want to continue yesterday’s look at antinomianism and to tease out the vision of the human person that it seems to imply. To do this I will borrow shamelessly from the Catholic apologist, G.K. Chesterton (whose cause for sainthood has been started in the Catholic Church). Chesterton calls “mad” the human tendency to isolate virtues from each other. Just as “some scientists care for truth; and their truth is pitiless. . . . some humanitarians only care for pity; and their pity (I am sorry to say) is often untruthful” (Orthodoxy). When this happens, when my search for the truth is pitiless and my pity is untruthful then I become “the enemy of the human race.” And I become as well my own enemy because I have opened the door, as Chesterton says, not to divine mercy but to anarchy to the refusal of any limits on my life, even the limits imposed upon me by my own humanity. As if one could pick and choose the virtues that wer...

O Champion and Martyr of God, imitating the Merciful and bearing from Him the grace of healing, cure our spiritual ills by your prayers, and set free from the temptation of the eternal enemy, those who ceaselessly cry out, "Save us, O Lord."

Jul 27th, 2009 KIEV, Ukraine ( AP ) - The leader of the Russian Orthodox Church led solemn prayers in Kiev on Monday, the first day of 10-day visit aimed at reasserting Moscow's dominance over church leaders in Ukraine. Patriarch Kirill led the service on the sacred St. Volodymyr Hill in central Kiev near the statue of prince Volodymyr, who launched the Slavic world's conversion to Christianity in 988. Kirill then called for friendship, brotherhood and unity between the two tense Orthodox neighbors. "We will pray for the good and prosperity of Ukraine, for the peace and accord among its citizens ... for our unbreakable spiritual and church unity," Kirill said. The statement appeared to be a reference to Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko's efforts to establish an independent Orthodox Church in Ukraine, which the Moscow Patriarchate and the Kremlin leaders strongly oppose. Currently, Ukraine's main Orthodox church answers to Kirill, but a breakaway church th...

An enjoyable, upbeat story. ( OCA DOW ) - At a recent meeting of the Holy Synod, the Monastery of the Holy Assumption in Calistoga, California was returned to the Diocese of the West. The monastery is the oldest Orthodox women’s monastery in the Americas and had been in the Diocese of the West since its founding. However, in the late 1980’s, when both the buildings and the monastics were in need of attention, Metropolitan Theodosius, serving as locum tenens of our diocese, designated it as stavropegial (see here ) and placed under his omophorion as Metropolitan. With most of the buildings in disrepair, the remaining nuns were moved to another location. His Beatitude then appointed Igumen Sergious (Gerken) as Priest-in-Charge of the vestiges of the monastery. With no regular salary or income, Father Sergious, through the generosity of many, has transformed the grounds into an oasis of flowering plants and greenery. The main building of the monastery,which was in danger of falling down,...

( Armenian WD ) - On Tuesday July 24 the Western Diocese joined many of its ecumenical and interfaith brothers and sisters in advocating that the Los Angeles City Council accept changes to the route of the Los Angeles Marathon such that it would improve access to places of worship. Representing the Primate was Dn. Matthew Ash, and Diocesan Executive Director Harout Markarian. The proposed compromise, which was reached through mediation the night before, was unanimously adopted by the City Council. This issue has long been a matter of dispute in Los Angeles, as each year the route and timing of the Marathon has made it difficult for worshippers to attend churches throughout the city, as well as for the faithful to participate in the Marathon. Last year an agreement was reached to change the Marathon day from Sunday to Monday. After a disappointing turnout, the LA Marathon organization decided to pursuing having the event return to Sundays. The agreed compromise was that while the event ...

I have received several emails requesting more information on the Antiochian convention in Palm Desert, CA. There is a lot of posting about violence (pushing and shoving), intimidation of laity and clergy, fake security personnel, financial abstrusion, and pro/anti +Philip factionalism. At this point I don't see much corroboration of specific occurrences so I have little to post at the moment. OCA News is keeping up with events, however, and I may put up a summary post of links with expository commentary once the event is over.

Day 1 - July 21 st Atlanta, GA ( DOSOCA ) - His Beatitude, Metropolitan Jonah, Locum Tenens of the Diocese of the South led the meeting of the DOS Diocesan Council here in preparation for the meetings of the Assembly to begin on Thursday here. The Council approved for presentation to the Assembly several changes to the DOS Uniform Parish Bylaws and three financial resolutions . Additionally, the Council passed the proposed 2010 DOS Budget Option 2 which includes the elimination of the OCA Assessment starting next year. The DOS will pay the OCA Assessment from Tithes given to the DOS from parishes. In return, the diocese is asking for a “real tithe” from parish income, reducing the number of restricted funds that presently may not be tithed to the diocese. If passed, the proposal will return the DOS to its original funding obligations first established in 1978 but abandoned in the early 1980’s when the OCA Assessment took too much of the DOS budget to maintain diocesan work. At that ...

From Roads From Emmaus . I enjoyed reading about the markers for fertile fields of evangelization. My koumbaro (fancy Greek term for “ecclesiastical relative,” in this case, my daughter’s godfather) is visiting with us here for a few days, and this afternoon, he and I visited my favorite local coffeehouse to get a little caffeination and chat in. While we were there, we talked a bit with the proprietor, as well as with a fellow who stopped in and was distributing posters and pamphlets for a new church in Emmaus. We learned that apparently there has been a decent amount of new religious exploration going on in Emmaus, often in terms of “alternatives” to the more established religious types in the area. This actually tells me a couple of useful things: People are becoming more open to religious experiences that might otherwise be new to them. Some of the church-growth-marketing types have probably researched, identified and targeted Emmaus as a potential growth area. No doubt most of the...

A solid read from Terry Mattingly : It doesn't take a Ph.D. in Liturgical Studies to tell the difference between a Southern Baptist church and an Orthodox church. You can get some pretty good clues just by walking in the door and looking around. But there are some similarities between the two that might be a little trickier to spot. For instance, let me tell you about what life is like on Sunday nights in a Southern Baptist congregation. Baptists worship at several different times during the week -- at least they did in the old days when I was growing up as a Southern Baptist pastor's son. One of those times is on Sunday nights. Back in the early 1980s, I was active in a church in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, in which the typical Sunday morning crowd would be about 200 to 300 people, which is rather small for a Baptist church, but fairly normal for an Orthodox parish. Then the crowd on Sunday night would be from 40 to 45 people. Now, that ratio should sound familiar to many prie...

( UOC ) - On July 22 at the Synodal Hall of Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Ukraine the Administrator of the UOC Archbishop Mytrofan of Bila Tserkva and Bohuslav received the chairman of the Pontifical Committee for Vatican-city Cardinal Giovanni Layolo, who is now on a visit to Ukraine. Cardinal Layolo was accompanied by Apostolic Nuntio in Ukraine Archbishop Ivan Yurkovych and priest Damazo Zuazua. Archbishop Mytrofan, having greeted cardinal on the part of His Beatitude Metropolitan Volodymyr, told of preparation for the visit of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill to Ukraine, and also touched upon the issue of de-Christianization of Europe, which refuses to admit its Christian roots. In his turn cardinal Giovanni Layolo agreed that within the boundaries of the European Union Christianity looses its positions and a probable entrance of Ukraine, the country famous for its Christian traditions would facilitate spiritual enrichment of Europe. Though, according to the diplo...

( Antiochian ) - Ancient Faith Radio is on the job at the 2009 Archdiocese Convention in Palm Desert, California. Visit AFR's site to listen to key speeches, events, divine services and other gatherings. Highlights so far include a pre-convention interview with Co-Chairman Don Meena about the work that went into planning and preparing this year's conference; an interview with Fr. Consantine Nasr of St. Elijah in Oklahoma City; plus recordings of Vespers and Divine Liturgy. Click here to listen!

I'm sure this is something eyebrow raising for every reader here. Latin Catholics will be surprised by some information, Eastern Catholics will be perturbed to be called a "rite" instead of a member of a sui iuris Church, and Orthodox will be less than happy to see talk of intercommunion that is largely only unidirectional (though with some notable exceptions in the Middle East). ROME, JULY 21, 2009 ( Zenit.org ) - Answered by Legionary of Christ Father Edward McNamara, professor of liturgy at the Regina Apostolorum university. Q1: Is there a real division/separation between Catholics of the Latin rite and Catholics of Eastern rites? Is a Catholic of the Latin rite debarred in anyway from participating in the liturgy of an Eastern-rite Catholic church? Does a Latin-rite Catholic have to follow a procedure before he can participate in the liturgy of an Eastern-rite Catholic church? -- H.W., Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and Tobago Q2: May a Catholic attend Mass in an Orthodox ch...

The wife and I took three children (our two eldest and the infant) to the Monastery Friends fundraiser that sought to gather a down payment on a new monastery to be located South East of Dallas. I missed the "no children" message due to a mix of travel and the flu, but Sister Barbara (the coordinator and beneficiary of the fundraising effort) was not at all phased and was happy to see our coiffed and laundered children. Metropolitan Jonah and Archbishop Dmitri were in attendance as were clergy from numerous jurisdictions along with a Coptic priest. I assumed this would be a rather OCA-centric affair, but was pleasantly surprised by the proportional mixture of Greeks, Antiochians, and OCA at the function. Fr. John Anderson emceed the event with words of welcome and appreciation followed by an introduction of the St. Seraphim Cathedral choir. Following the musical selections, there were some words from Archbishop Dmitri on the history of the monastery effort and of Metropolit...

But a shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom.

( AOI ) - Bishop Savas, head of the Greek Orthodox Office of Society and Culture, is starting a new blog called Living in the LOGOSphere (no posts yet). He told Greek News that the new blog “will have a different, less personal, less whimsical character” than the travel diary blog he authored last year. Readers of the AOI Observer will recall that his blog greeting to the new president after last year’s election included this exclamation: This is the Day that the Lord has made! The editorial focus on the new blog will range from “the political to the environmental, from bioethical issues to trends in popular culture,” the bishop says. A number of writers will be involved. This is a positive development and welcomed here. Too much of what passes for “social witness” in the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese in recent years has been focused on the very mixed bag of “national issues” of the Greek state and constant collaboration with various and sundry Greek pols and bureaucrats. Defense of the...

Lyon, France ( ENI ) - Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomeos I, a spiritual leader who represents Eastern Orthodox Christianity, has called for the creation of a churches' umbrella body in Europe to include Roman Catholics alongside Anglicans, Orthodox and Protestants. "It is only by engaging in dialogue and by closely cooperating that the churches will prove capable of proclaiming the Gospel of Christ to the world in a convincing and effective way," the Orthodox leader said in a 19 July address in Lyon, France to mark the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Conference of European Churches. CEC now has about 120 member churches, principally Anglican, Orthodox and Protestant, but Bartholomeos said that Europe needs a grouping that includes the Catholic Church. This would help to promote unity between churches and enable them to act jointly on issues in Europe such as secularisation, human rights violations, racism, the economic crisis, and threats to the environment. ...